Hummingbird Gardens Joe Schaefer, Urban Wildlife Extension Specialist

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1 MARION COUNTY GOVERNMNT Table of Contents: Hummingbird Gardens Asian Cycad Scale Crinum Lilies FFL Principle #5: Attracting Wildlife to your Garden Timely Gardening Tips for Marion County Upcoming Events Published by Norma Samuel UF/IFAS Extension Marion County Horticulture Agent Timely Gardening Tips for MARION COUNTY by Josephine Leyte-Vidal, UF/IFAS Extension Marion County Master Gardener Our lawns are growing beautifully with this month s rains. Unfortunately, much of the rain is falling during the night which keeps the turf very wet and makes it susceptible to diseases. Look for brown-patch disease that may kill grass within a short time; you will see a brown circle with a darker outer ring. The usual treatment is with a fungicide applied to the affected area plus a foot or two outside the ring. Long periods of wet conditions may also cause grey leaf spot fungus in St. Augustine lawns. The blades may have brown or ash-colored Hummingbird Gardens Joe Schaefer, Urban Wildlife Extension Specialist August 2016 Hummingbirds are brightly colored birds that are always a wonder to see, and it s easy to attract them to your garden. These remarkable creatures have striking plumage and a high-energy lifestyle. Three species of hummingbirds live in Florida through much of the year, and another two can occasionally be seen here in winter. The most commonly seen is the ruby-throated. These Female Hummingbird on Cigarette Plant ifas.ufl.edu feathered jewels are only about three inches long and weigh as little as a penny. Hummingbirds get their name from the sound their wings make while beating up to 200 times per second. One of their most amazing traits is their helicopterlike flying stunts. Not only can hummingbirds suspend their bodies in midair, they can also fly backwards, upwards, and even upside-down. To support all this high-speed activity, hummingbirds need to consume large amounts of high-energy nectar. Hummingbirds eat a third to half of their body weight each day in order to keep those wings beating. The also eat insects in addition to nectar. They eat every 10 to 15 minutes and giving them a variety of food sources is very important. To attract hummingbirds to your garden, choose plants with brightly colored or tubular flowers. Hummers prefer red, orange, and pink flowers, and use their long tongues to sip the nectar found within. Some hummingbird favorites are: Bottlebrush Cigar Flower Cigarette Plant Columbine Coral Honeysuckle Firebush Firecrackers Plant Firespike Scarlet Salvia Shrimp Plant Starburst Clerodendrum Swamp Mallow Trumpet Flower Turk s Cap

2 Page 2 Timely Gardening Tips for MARION COUNTY by Josephine Leyte-Vidal, UF/IFAS Extension Marion County Master Gardener (continued from page 1) lesions. A fungicide will also control this problem. Remember, read the label carefully and follow the directions as written. Poinsettias need to be pruned before the end of August if you want to see those beautiful and colorful bracts for the holiday season. There are a few annuals that can be planted now, such as begonia, coleus, cosmos, gaillardia, impatiens and salvia. It will soon be time to begin the second vegetable planting of the year. Prepare vacant areas for planting by adding organic matter, compost or well-aged manure, and turn under the cover crops. Two weeks before planting, add some controlled release fertilizer. P l a n t l i m a b e a n s, watermelon, tomato and pepper transplants midmonth. Later in the month, plant beans, broccoli, cauliflower, collards, corn, cucumbers, bunching onions, southern peas, squashes, and turnips. Palms may show yellowing on the older leaves indicating a shortage of magnesium, a common condition after periods of heavy rain. Magnesium sulfate may be added with a palm specific fertilizer. Hummingbird Gardens by Joe Schaefer, Urban Wildlife Extension Specialist (continued from Page 1) Hummingbirds nest spring through summer and need a lot of nectar during this time, so make sure you have numerous nectar plants available. You can also help meet their needs with a hummingbird feeder. When shopping for a feeder, choose one that has red plastic fixtures and multiple feeding stations. The reason color is so Hummingbird on Shrimp Plant ifas.ufl.edu important is that hummingbirds are especially attracted to red flowers. Some feeders also have perches that allow the birds to rest while feeding. When mixing up nectar for your hummers, only use an unaltered solution of one part sugar to four parts water. You may have seen some people dye their sugar solution red; however artificial dyed food is not ideal for hummingbirds. You should change the syrup solution and clean your hummingbird feeder every 4 to 5 days. Clean the feeder with hot water and a little soap. Be sure to rinse the feeder out thoroughly before adding fresh syrup. If you should happen to find yourself with a hummingbird and ant feeder, don't turn to pesticides. Instead, try putting a little petroleum jelly around the openings on the feeder and along the wire that suspends the feeder. You don't want to kill off the pests; these fascinating little birds also get protein in their diet from eating insects. Hummingbird Facts Hummingbirds can remember every flower they have been to, and how long it will take a flower to refill with nectar. Hummingbirds can see ultraviolet light. Hummingbirds do not drink through their beaks like a straw. They lap up nectar with their tongues at the rate of about 13 licks per second. Hummingbirds will visit an average of 1,000 flowers per day for nectar. Hummingbirds have an average life span of about 5 years.

3 Page 3 Sago Assassin: Asian Cycad Scale By Harold Hodges, originally published in Gardening Solutions, July 2012 The sago palm (Cycas revoluta) was once considered a common and traditional Florida landscape plant. This slow-growing cycad (no, it s not a palm) is not picky, growing in sun or shade, indoors or outside, with very little care. But its popularity has dwindled Source: ifas.ufl.edu drastically, thanks to a pest called cycad aulacaspis scale, or Asian cycad scale. Aulacaspis yasumatsui is an armored scale that has been observed on many cycads in Florida, although this scale seems to favor sagos. Newly hatched scales, called crawlers, initially infest the trunk and base of the leaves. These crawlers will also infest the leaves, cones, seeds, and roots of cycads. The damage from these tiny sucking insects initially appears as yellow or bleached-looking spots, eventually making the leaves brown and crispy. Highly infested cycads are almost completely covered with a white crust that consists of living and dead insects. Cycad aulacaspis scale seems to spread over short distances by wind, and long distances by the transport of infested plants. It can coat a sago within months and kill it within a year. The scale can even affect the roots down to two feet deep. Cycad aulacaspis scale is a tough pest to get rid of, but repeated treatments with horticultural oils or an approved systemic insecticide may help. To manage this scale, wash your plant with a vigorous spray of water to remove any dead or living scales. Then apply a horticultural oil over the entire plant weekly for one month. If you have heavily infested plants, remove the leaves before treating. Carefully discard removed fronds with household trash, not yard trash. In the case of severe infestations you may need to treat the roots as well. Frequent oil treatments can result in an unsightly build-up of oil and dead scales, but this can be improved by occasionally hosing the plant off. Contact the Master Gardener Plant Clinic for more information on controlling Asian cycad scale. Another option is to consider an alternative plant. The Dioon genus of cycads are rarely attacked by this pest. UPCOMING LECTURES/EVENTS: Educational seminars and events are presented by UF/IFAS Extension Agents and/or Master Gardeners. Unless otherwise indicated, to pre-register, please call or terry.holt@marioncountyfl.org. August Dunnellon Satellite Plant Clinic August 2, :00 a.m. 1:00 p.m. Dunnellon Public Library Robinson Rd, Dunnellon Belleview Satellite Plant Clinic August 5, :00 a.m. 1:00 p.m. Belleview Public Library SE Hwy 484, Belleview Master the Possibilities Series Fall and Winter Gardening August 12, :00 11:00 a.m. On Top of the World 8415 SW 80th St, Ocala Marion Oaks Library Master Gardener Series Fall and Winter Gardening August 19, :00 5:00 p.m. Marion Oaks Public Library 294 Marion Oaks Lane, Ocala Main Library Master Gardener Series Pests in the Florida Garden August 20, :00 Noon Ocala Public Library Headquarters 2720 E. Silver Springs Blvd, Ocala

4 Page 4 UPCOMING LECTURES/EVENTS: September Freedom Library Native and Drought Tolerant Plants September 2, 2016 Noon 1 p.m. Freedom Public Library 5870 SW 95th St, Ocala Dunnellon Satellite Plant Clinic September 6, :00 a.m. 1:00 p.m. Dunnellon Public Library Robinson Rd, Dunnellon Master the Possibilities Series Gardening for Birds September 9, :00 11:00 a.m. On Top of the World 8415 SW 80th St, Ocala Reddick Library: Fall and Winter Vegetable Gardening September 10, :00 a.m. Noon Reddick Public Library NW Gainesville Rd, Reddick Fort McCoy Library Ask the Experts September 17, :00 11:00 a.m. Fort McCoy Public Library NE Highway 315, Ft. McCoy Forest Public Library Ask the Experts September 17, :00 3:00 p.m. Forest Public Library 905 South Hwy 314A, Ocklawaha Dunnellon Library Ask the Experts September 20, :00 3:00 p.m. Dunnellon Public Library Robinson Rd, Dunnellon Crinum Lillies: Hallmark of Southern Gardens by Anne Lambrecht, Master Gardener Crinum lilies are everywhere. Even if you don t know what they are, you ve probably seen them in the landscape somewhere. They are easy to grow because they love heat and moisture and produce an abundant array of showy flowers in the summer. There are about 130 species of bulbous plants in this genus which belongs to Photo by Anne Lambrecht the Amaryllis family. They are found in tropical and subtropical zones, usually in coastal areas. The crinum plant is often referred to as the southern swamp lily, spider lily, or as a cemetery plant, because it used to be planted at graveyards in the olden days. The crinum is usually started from large bulbs or from the large seeds it produces or by offsets called pups. The seed method has been proven successful by me: I have grown them by letting the huge seed pods rest on the ground where they will take hold and root. This way, they will flower in three years so it s better to grow them from bulbs if you re stressed for time. Their flowers are narrow and spidery and in some species, trumpet shaped with flaring lobes. The flowers may be white or in shades of pink or rose and are oh, so fragrant, tropical. The bulbs can become gigantic (some up to 20 lbs). Their scent is sweet and their agreeable nature has captivated gardeners from the start, especially in the south where they can withstand the sun and heat, humidity and the wet season. The crinum plant reaches 3 to 5 feet at maturity and the same around. It is often seen singly in the landscape or in short, growing hedges where blooms and fragrance can be enjoyed. Every southern garden should have crinum lilies. Crinums will die to the ground in a freeze, but the bulb will survive in Zone 9a. Mulching them in the late fall provides insurance that they will return in the spring. Plant them in fall or spring, burying the Photo by Anne Lambrecht bulbs up to their necks. Use a LOT of organic matter in the hole (think swamp). Fertilize often with both slowrelease as well as the bloom booster kind and they'll bloom quickly after soaking rains during the growing season. Crinum lilies are wonderful plants, their late flowers bringing a zing to the garden at this time of year and are a spectacular addition to any Florida landscape.

5 Page 5 FFL Principle #5: Attracting Wildlife by Jack LeCroy, Florida-Friendly Landscaping TM Agent During the past month, numerous critters that frequent our gardens have been on my mind. It s interesting because it has been for two completely different reasons. I recently went to China for a conference and visited some very large cities including Shanghai and Beijing. As I acclimated myself to the area, I started to notice the lack of wildlife in the city. Of course we know the adverse effects of urbanization and how they can disturb populations of some of these creatures, and it was very apparent during my trip. I spent 18 days in the country and I saw only a handful of birds, butterflies and bees. Honestly, I was amazed at how dispirited it made me feel not to see a multitude of creatures flying and hopping about the city. Another wildlife encounter that has been on my mind actually happened right here in Marion County. Our office s plant clinic had been receiving numerous calls about a grasshopper apocalypse slowly encompassing a community in the southeastern section of the county. Norma and I went to investigate. The members of this community were not kidding. I have never seen so many grasshoppers in one area before. One brave grasshopper even flew up and kissed me right on the lips, and I was very thankful my mouth was closed at that moment. These two instances are at total opposite ends of the spectrum when talking about wildlife in our gardens and in the areas where we live. Needless to say, wildlife is important and there must be a balance or otherwise, populations can either explode or slowly dwindle away. When thinking about attracting wildlife to your garden, decide what type of wildlife you would like to see. Do you enjoy hearing the chirping of birds or seeing the colorful fluttering of many types of butterflies? Maybe you have a vegetable garden that needs to be pollinated for a bountiful harvest; so you might need to attract more bees. Whatever the creature is that you re trying to attract, it needs three basic things: shelter, water, and a food source. Obviously, a bee is not going to like the same setup as a certain bird might like, so further research must be done for whatever you are trying to attract. Of course this is what we are here to help you with. If you are trying to attract wildlife to your gardens, let us help you pick the best plants and structures that will make you and your guests happiest. As a side note, try to be tolerant of the wildlife that you might not like seeing in your gardens as much. Remember, they all serve a purpose. If you have a nuisance creature in your yard, give your local extension office a call. We will develop a plan to deal with some of the fauna that you might encounter. THRYALLIS AUGUST SPOTLIGHT PLANT Thryallis is a good candidate for lowmaintenance landscapes in Central Florida. This compact upright, rounded evergreen shrub is easy to grow, drought resistant, and delivers flushes of sunny flowers in late summer and fall with sporadic blooms throughout the year. The blooms are attractive to bees and butterflies. LIGHT: Full Sun for best flowering. Will tolerate partial sun. MOISTURE: Does well in dry sandy soils. Average water needs. Drought tolerant. Suitable for xeriscaping. HEIGHT: 4-6 feet. Needs occasional pruning to keep from getting leggy. Works well as a hedge.

6 Page 6 Items below are available for purchase at the UF/IFAS Extension Marion County. We also have many other items available in our Shop Extension store. The store is open Mon-Fri from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Please come to see these environmentally-friendly products, as well as many other agricultural-related items. Foundation for the Gator Nation An Equal Opportunity Institution

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